CONCORD, NC - Sept. 14, 2009 -
A LITTLE MOMENTUM: Josh Richards wasn't able to finally add a victory in a crown-jewel dirt Late Model event to his rapidly-expanding resume on Saturday night at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio.
But while he was clearly disappointed to remain atop the list of ‘Best Drivers Yet To Win A Big One' after the checkered flag fell on the prestigious UMP DIRTcar Racing-sanctioned World 100, the 21-year-old sensation from Shinnston, W.Va., gracefully accepted a sixth-place run that left him as the race's highest-finishing World of Outlaws Late Model Series regular.
“At least we were closer tonight than we've been the last couple years,” said Richards, who finished 19th in the 2007 event and failed to qualify in 2008. “If I couldn't win I wanted a top five (finish), but I'm happy to run sixth here. With 172 cars (entered), running sixth is definitely awesome.”
Richards, whose best finish in five career World 100 attempts is a fourth in 2006, enjoyed a solid, if not spectacular weekend at NASCAR star Tony Stewart's famed half-mile oval. He turned the fourth-fastest lap in Friday night's time trials, finished second in a 15-lap heat race on Saturday night and quietly moved forward from the 10th starting spot to place sixth in the A-Main.
If there was anything Richards would like to do over, it would be fast-timer Dan Schlieper's heat-race inversion redraw on Friday night. Schlieper picked a six, giving Richards a starting spot outside the third row in the fourth heat.
“We got up to second in our heat, but it took us a little too long to get there from sixth,” said Richards. “I think in another lap or two we might've passed (Dennis) Erb (for the win) – we were catching him, and that would've put us in a lot better position for the feature.”
Indeed, a heat-race triumph would have aligned Richards third for the start of the World 100. Considering the fact that passing became difficult about one-third of the way through the event because the surface took some rubber, Richards might have found himself in the mix up front if he had been able to overtake Erb earlier in the night.
“The track was so dry and rubbered up so hard, so early, you just had to sit and ride the best you could,” said Richards, who earned $5,000 for his World 100 performance. “We got Earl (Pearson) for sixth on that last restart (lap 83) and I was trying to get (Jimmy) Owens (for fifth) at the end, but I just couldn't find a way by him.
“The Dream (in June) was very frustrating for us, so this weekend shows we're gaining on it here,” added Richards, who set fast-time for the $100,000-to-win Dream but finished a disappointing 22nd. “We got some good laps in the feature and hopefully we learned some things that will help us when we come back here next year.”
Richards did visit Victory Lane following the World 100 to congratulate winner Bart Hartman of Zanesville, Ohio, who happens to be the last driver Richards's father Mark hired to run the familiar Rocket Chassis house car before Josh took over its seat fulltime in 2005. Hartman ran the No. 1 machine on the entire WoO LMS in 2004 – the same year that Richards made his debut behind the wheel as Hartman's teammate in a selected number of Outlaw events.
“Congratulations to Hartman,” said Richards. “For a guy who I guess almost passed out after his heat race (due to a splitting headache) and didn't even know if he could make a lap – to go out there and win the World 100, I'm sure he's feeling a lot better after that.
“He finally won this thing after coming here for so many years. We just gotta keep coming here and digging like he has for so long.”
Richards now shifts his attention to this weekend's WoO LMS events in the Midwest, on Saturday night (Sept. 19) at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo., and Sunday night (Sept. 20) at La Salle (Ill.) Speedway. He enters the critical swing – the last WoO LMS races of the 2009 season not being held at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. – sitting second in the points standings, a mere four points behind 2007 champion Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky.
“I feel comfortable at both tracks,” said Richards, who is seeking his first-ever WoO LMS points crown. “I didn't run too great at La Salle when we were there a couple years ago, but I think we'll have a better idea about what to do when we go back this time. And last year we were good at Pevely and I like that place, so I like our chances.
“I feel pretty confident (about resuming WoO LMS action) after coming (to Eldora) and running sixth. It helps the team morale a little bit going into the (Midwest) weekend. We just gotta not let anything bother us and go out there and do the best we can.”
Richards finished 13th in his lone WoO LMS start at La Salle in 2007. He has made three tour appearances at I-55, finishing progressively better in each race (14th in '05, 13th in '07, third in '08).
COOLING OFF: The red-hot Tim Fuller – a winner of seven of the last 11 WoO LMS A-Mains – seemed to still have good fortune on his side at Eldora when his 32nd-fastest time-trial lap gave him the pole position for the second heat thanks to the six-car invert.
Making his first career appearance at the World 100 extravaganza, Fuller, 41, of Watertown, N.Y., finished second in his heat to earn the eighth starting spot in the A-Main. But soon after a caution flag flew on lap 21 as Fuller was bidding to overtake Owens for third, the engine in his Gypsum Express Rocket car began to skip. Fuller fell to seventh before retiring on lap 52 with a terminal motor problem, leaving him 25th in the final rundown.
“I think we might have had a third-place car,” said Fuller. “I don't think we would've had anything for Hartman and (runner-up Brian) Birkhofer, especially after (the track) rubbered, but I felt like we were good enough for third.”
WORLD 100 OUTLAWS: Richards and Fuller were among a group of seven WoO LMS regulars who made the World 100 starting field.
The group included Brady Smith of Solon Springs, Wis. (finished 13th), who pulled off one of the weekend's most thrilling moves when he split two cars off turn two to surge into third place during the sixth heat; Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky. (14th), who finished the 100 sporting damage to his car's right-rear spoiler; Chub Frank of Bear Lake, Pa. (15th), who won a B-Main; Rick Eckert of York, Pa. (17th), who started 28th and lost a lap early but passed Owens moments later to get back on the lead lap; and Steve Francis (24th), who started 27th and was never a factor before retiring midway through the 100 while one lap down.
NO MAGIC THIS TIME: One year after standing tall on Eldora's stage after winning the World 100 for the first time, WoO LMS standout Shane Clanton of Locust Grove, Ga., was a spectator for Saturday night's A-Main.
Clanton, 33, never quite found his rhythm while attempting to defend his World 100 title. He missed the heat-race inversion with a 41st-fastest time-trial lap, then missed transferring to the headliner by three spots in his heat and two in a B-Main.
Clanton's DNQ made him the seventh driver in the 39-year history of the World 100 who did not start the feature event the year after his triumph, joining Verlin Eakers (1972 winner), Joe Merryfield (1975), Charlie Hughes (1976), Ken Walton (1978), Donnie Moran (1992) and Earl Pearson Jr. (2006).
FORGETTABLE EVENING: Senoia, Ga.'s Clint Smith experienced a double-dose of misery during Saturday night's program at Eldora.
After earning himself a third-place starting spot in a heat race when he ripped off the 21st-fastest circuit on his second time-trial lap on Friday, Smith missed transferring to the A-Main by two spots in his heat. He then scratched from the B-Main due to a broken motor in his new GRT car, which he debuted at Eldora.
Smith still had another horse in Saturday's race because 2007 Dream winner Steve Casebolt of Richmond, Ind., was behind the wheel of Smith's backup car, but a heavily-smoking machine forced Casebolt to pull out of his B-Main during the pace laps. Casebolt, who became friendly with Smith in recent years while they vacationed together on the annual ‘Cruise With The Champions,' landed a ride with Smith at the 11th hour after relating that two blown engines had left him without a powerplant for his own car.
THE ROOKS: Jordan Bland of Campbellsville, Ky., and Dustin Hapka of Grand Forks, N.D., represented the five-driver 2009 WoO LMS Rookie of the Year class at the World 100, but neither driver made the A-Main starting field.
The 20-year-old Bland, who qualified for the World 100 last year, appeared to be in good shape for back-to-back feature appearances after he avoided an opening-lap tangle and then surged into second place on the restart. But his car's right-rear spoiler was damaged when he clipped the outside wall several circuits later and he faded to a seventh-place finish. He never threatened to grab a transfer spot in a B-Main, finishing ninth.
Hapka, meanwhile, made the cut for the heat races in his first-ever World 100 appearance but finished 15th in the third prelim, ending his weekend early.
STRONG DEBUT: Rising teenage star Austin Hubbard of Seaford, Del., who has entered 25 WoO LMS events this season and plans to apply as a Rookie of the Year candidate for the 2010 campaign, was impressive in his first-ever visit to Eldora.
The 17-year-old timed 17th-fastest and finished third in the fifth heat to become the second-youngest driver to qualify for the World 100. Josh Richards was one month younger than Hubbard when he made the World 100 starting field in 2005.
Hubbard was understandably in awe after cracking the elite feature event.
“I never imagined I would make the show tonight,” said Hubbard, who hadn't even seen Eldora Speedway prior to arriving on Wednesday night to watch NASCAR regular Aric Almirola drive his car in the Prelude to the Dream. “I've probably never been so scored in my life.”
Hubbard went down a lap early in the 100, but he proceeded to gain valuable seat time at Eldora by running the remainder of the distance en route to a 19th-place finish.
TIRE UPDATE: WoO LMS have announced that UMP DIRTcar's Hoosier 20-, 30- and 40-compound tires will be the only rubber permitted for use in this weekend's tour events at I-55 Raceway and La Salle Speedway.
Ken Schrader's I-55 Raceway will host the 50-lap, $10,000-to-win Pepsi Nationals on Saturday night (Sept. 19), while Bob Sargent's Track Enterprises Inc. will present the 18th annual 18th Best Western Illinois Fall Nationals (40 laps/$7,000 to win) on Sunday night (Sept. 20.)
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
The World of Outlaws Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Crane Cams (Official Valvetrain), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Fusion Energy Boost (Official Energy Boost), SuperClean (Official Cleaner-Degreaser) and VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors Champ Pans, Eibach Springs, Hoosier Tires, Integra Shocks, Jake's Custom Golf Carts, Ohlins Shocks, Racing Electronics, Quarter Master and Wrisco Aluminum; Crane Cams Engine Builder's Challenge participants Cornett Racing Engines, Custom Race Engines and Pro Power Racing Engines; and Chassis Builder Challenge participants Rocket Chassis and Team Zero by Bloomquist.
A LITTLE MOMENTUM: Josh Richards wasn't able to finally add a victory in a crown-jewel dirt Late Model event to his rapidly-expanding resume on Saturday night at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio.
But while he was clearly disappointed to remain atop the list of ‘Best Drivers Yet To Win A Big One' after the checkered flag fell on the prestigious UMP DIRTcar Racing-sanctioned World 100, the 21-year-old sensation from Shinnston, W.Va., gracefully accepted a sixth-place run that left him as the race's highest-finishing World of Outlaws Late Model Series regular.
“At least we were closer tonight than we've been the last couple years,” said Richards, who finished 19th in the 2007 event and failed to qualify in 2008. “If I couldn't win I wanted a top five (finish), but I'm happy to run sixth here. With 172 cars (entered), running sixth is definitely awesome.”
Richards, whose best finish in five career World 100 attempts is a fourth in 2006, enjoyed a solid, if not spectacular weekend at NASCAR star Tony Stewart's famed half-mile oval. He turned the fourth-fastest lap in Friday night's time trials, finished second in a 15-lap heat race on Saturday night and quietly moved forward from the 10th starting spot to place sixth in the A-Main.
If there was anything Richards would like to do over, it would be fast-timer Dan Schlieper's heat-race inversion redraw on Friday night. Schlieper picked a six, giving Richards a starting spot outside the third row in the fourth heat.
“We got up to second in our heat, but it took us a little too long to get there from sixth,” said Richards. “I think in another lap or two we might've passed (Dennis) Erb (for the win) – we were catching him, and that would've put us in a lot better position for the feature.”
Indeed, a heat-race triumph would have aligned Richards third for the start of the World 100. Considering the fact that passing became difficult about one-third of the way through the event because the surface took some rubber, Richards might have found himself in the mix up front if he had been able to overtake Erb earlier in the night.
“The track was so dry and rubbered up so hard, so early, you just had to sit and ride the best you could,” said Richards, who earned $5,000 for his World 100 performance. “We got Earl (Pearson) for sixth on that last restart (lap 83) and I was trying to get (Jimmy) Owens (for fifth) at the end, but I just couldn't find a way by him.
“The Dream (in June) was very frustrating for us, so this weekend shows we're gaining on it here,” added Richards, who set fast-time for the $100,000-to-win Dream but finished a disappointing 22nd. “We got some good laps in the feature and hopefully we learned some things that will help us when we come back here next year.”
Richards did visit Victory Lane following the World 100 to congratulate winner Bart Hartman of Zanesville, Ohio, who happens to be the last driver Richards's father Mark hired to run the familiar Rocket Chassis house car before Josh took over its seat fulltime in 2005. Hartman ran the No. 1 machine on the entire WoO LMS in 2004 – the same year that Richards made his debut behind the wheel as Hartman's teammate in a selected number of Outlaw events.
“Congratulations to Hartman,” said Richards. “For a guy who I guess almost passed out after his heat race (due to a splitting headache) and didn't even know if he could make a lap – to go out there and win the World 100, I'm sure he's feeling a lot better after that.
“He finally won this thing after coming here for so many years. We just gotta keep coming here and digging like he has for so long.”
Richards now shifts his attention to this weekend's WoO LMS events in the Midwest, on Saturday night (Sept. 19) at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo., and Sunday night (Sept. 20) at La Salle (Ill.) Speedway. He enters the critical swing – the last WoO LMS races of the 2009 season not being held at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. – sitting second in the points standings, a mere four points behind 2007 champion Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky.
“I feel comfortable at both tracks,” said Richards, who is seeking his first-ever WoO LMS points crown. “I didn't run too great at La Salle when we were there a couple years ago, but I think we'll have a better idea about what to do when we go back this time. And last year we were good at Pevely and I like that place, so I like our chances.
“I feel pretty confident (about resuming WoO LMS action) after coming (to Eldora) and running sixth. It helps the team morale a little bit going into the (Midwest) weekend. We just gotta not let anything bother us and go out there and do the best we can.”
Richards finished 13th in his lone WoO LMS start at La Salle in 2007. He has made three tour appearances at I-55, finishing progressively better in each race (14th in '05, 13th in '07, third in '08).
COOLING OFF: The red-hot Tim Fuller – a winner of seven of the last 11 WoO LMS A-Mains – seemed to still have good fortune on his side at Eldora when his 32nd-fastest time-trial lap gave him the pole position for the second heat thanks to the six-car invert.
Making his first career appearance at the World 100 extravaganza, Fuller, 41, of Watertown, N.Y., finished second in his heat to earn the eighth starting spot in the A-Main. But soon after a caution flag flew on lap 21 as Fuller was bidding to overtake Owens for third, the engine in his Gypsum Express Rocket car began to skip. Fuller fell to seventh before retiring on lap 52 with a terminal motor problem, leaving him 25th in the final rundown.
“I think we might have had a third-place car,” said Fuller. “I don't think we would've had anything for Hartman and (runner-up Brian) Birkhofer, especially after (the track) rubbered, but I felt like we were good enough for third.”
WORLD 100 OUTLAWS: Richards and Fuller were among a group of seven WoO LMS regulars who made the World 100 starting field.
The group included Brady Smith of Solon Springs, Wis. (finished 13th), who pulled off one of the weekend's most thrilling moves when he split two cars off turn two to surge into third place during the sixth heat; Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky. (14th), who finished the 100 sporting damage to his car's right-rear spoiler; Chub Frank of Bear Lake, Pa. (15th), who won a B-Main; Rick Eckert of York, Pa. (17th), who started 28th and lost a lap early but passed Owens moments later to get back on the lead lap; and Steve Francis (24th), who started 27th and was never a factor before retiring midway through the 100 while one lap down.
NO MAGIC THIS TIME: One year after standing tall on Eldora's stage after winning the World 100 for the first time, WoO LMS standout Shane Clanton of Locust Grove, Ga., was a spectator for Saturday night's A-Main.
Clanton, 33, never quite found his rhythm while attempting to defend his World 100 title. He missed the heat-race inversion with a 41st-fastest time-trial lap, then missed transferring to the headliner by three spots in his heat and two in a B-Main.
Clanton's DNQ made him the seventh driver in the 39-year history of the World 100 who did not start the feature event the year after his triumph, joining Verlin Eakers (1972 winner), Joe Merryfield (1975), Charlie Hughes (1976), Ken Walton (1978), Donnie Moran (1992) and Earl Pearson Jr. (2006).
FORGETTABLE EVENING: Senoia, Ga.'s Clint Smith experienced a double-dose of misery during Saturday night's program at Eldora.
After earning himself a third-place starting spot in a heat race when he ripped off the 21st-fastest circuit on his second time-trial lap on Friday, Smith missed transferring to the A-Main by two spots in his heat. He then scratched from the B-Main due to a broken motor in his new GRT car, which he debuted at Eldora.
Smith still had another horse in Saturday's race because 2007 Dream winner Steve Casebolt of Richmond, Ind., was behind the wheel of Smith's backup car, but a heavily-smoking machine forced Casebolt to pull out of his B-Main during the pace laps. Casebolt, who became friendly with Smith in recent years while they vacationed together on the annual ‘Cruise With The Champions,' landed a ride with Smith at the 11th hour after relating that two blown engines had left him without a powerplant for his own car.
THE ROOKS: Jordan Bland of Campbellsville, Ky., and Dustin Hapka of Grand Forks, N.D., represented the five-driver 2009 WoO LMS Rookie of the Year class at the World 100, but neither driver made the A-Main starting field.
The 20-year-old Bland, who qualified for the World 100 last year, appeared to be in good shape for back-to-back feature appearances after he avoided an opening-lap tangle and then surged into second place on the restart. But his car's right-rear spoiler was damaged when he clipped the outside wall several circuits later and he faded to a seventh-place finish. He never threatened to grab a transfer spot in a B-Main, finishing ninth.
Hapka, meanwhile, made the cut for the heat races in his first-ever World 100 appearance but finished 15th in the third prelim, ending his weekend early.
STRONG DEBUT: Rising teenage star Austin Hubbard of Seaford, Del., who has entered 25 WoO LMS events this season and plans to apply as a Rookie of the Year candidate for the 2010 campaign, was impressive in his first-ever visit to Eldora.
The 17-year-old timed 17th-fastest and finished third in the fifth heat to become the second-youngest driver to qualify for the World 100. Josh Richards was one month younger than Hubbard when he made the World 100 starting field in 2005.
Hubbard was understandably in awe after cracking the elite feature event.
“I never imagined I would make the show tonight,” said Hubbard, who hadn't even seen Eldora Speedway prior to arriving on Wednesday night to watch NASCAR regular Aric Almirola drive his car in the Prelude to the Dream. “I've probably never been so scored in my life.”
Hubbard went down a lap early in the 100, but he proceeded to gain valuable seat time at Eldora by running the remainder of the distance en route to a 19th-place finish.
TIRE UPDATE: WoO LMS have announced that UMP DIRTcar's Hoosier 20-, 30- and 40-compound tires will be the only rubber permitted for use in this weekend's tour events at I-55 Raceway and La Salle Speedway.
Ken Schrader's I-55 Raceway will host the 50-lap, $10,000-to-win Pepsi Nationals on Saturday night (Sept. 19), while Bob Sargent's Track Enterprises Inc. will present the 18th annual 18th Best Western Illinois Fall Nationals (40 laps/$7,000 to win) on Sunday night (Sept. 20.)
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
The World of Outlaws Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Crane Cams (Official Valvetrain), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Fusion Energy Boost (Official Energy Boost), SuperClean (Official Cleaner-Degreaser) and VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors Champ Pans, Eibach Springs, Hoosier Tires, Integra Shocks, Jake's Custom Golf Carts, Ohlins Shocks, Racing Electronics, Quarter Master and Wrisco Aluminum; Crane Cams Engine Builder's Challenge participants Cornett Racing Engines, Custom Race Engines and Pro Power Racing Engines; and Chassis Builder Challenge participants Rocket Chassis and Team Zero by Bloomquist.
